Head and hair wrap

ABSTRACT

Head and hair wraps disclosed herein may include a band of material sized and shaped to wrap around a wearer&#39;s head and a lower edge of the band may be configured to be proximate to a hair line of a wearer when worn. The band may include two notches shaped, sized, and positioned within the band to align with the wearer&#39;s ears so that, for example, the band may wrap around a wearer&#39;s head without covering the wearer&#39;s ears. At times, a top of the wearer&#39;s head is not covered by the band when the head wrap is worn by the wearer.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a NON-PROVISIONAL of U.S. Patent Application Ser.No. 62/969,886, filed 4 Feb. 2021 entitled “HEAD AND HAIR WRAP,” whichis incorporated herein by reference, in its entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention pertains to apparel and, more particularly, headwear, hair wraps, and hair styling tools.

BACKGROUND

Traditional head and/or hair wraps are problematic because they fail toadequately cover the full circumference of a wearer's hairline,particularly around the wearer's ears and at the base of the neck. Thiscan lead to hair at these locations being damaged or broken. Inaddition, for some hairstyles, failing to keep hair flat while wrappedcan cause frizzing or curling of hair that may be inconsistent with awearer's desired hair style.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The present invention is illustrated by way of example, and notlimitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1A provides a top plan view of an exemplary head wrap, inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 1B provides a top plan view of the exemplary head wrap withexemplary dimensions, in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 1C is a top plan view of three different sizes of the exemplaryhead wrap, in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 2A and 2B provide a rear view and a side-perspective view,respectively, of the exemplary head wrap wrapped around a mannequinhead, in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 3A is a block diagram of an exemplary covering for the head wrapsdisclosed herein, in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3B is a block diagram showing a side view of an exemplary of anexemplary head wrap system that includes head wrap with a coveringaffixed to the head wrap, in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 4A-4E are images of women wearing the exemplary head wrap or anexemplary head wrap system, in accordance with the present invention.

The drawings of the instant application are not drawn to scale.Throughout the drawings, the same reference numerals and characters,unless otherwise stated, are used to denote like features, elements,components, or portions of the illustrated embodiments. Moreover, whilethe subject invention will now be described in detail with reference tothe drawings, the description is done in connection with theillustrative embodiments. It is intended that changes and modificationscan be made to the described embodiments without departing from the truescope and spirit of the subject invention as defined by the appendedclaims.

SUMMARY

Head and hair wraps disclosed herein may include a band of materialsized and shaped to wrap around a wearer's head in order to, forexample, hold hair in place, protect a hairline of the wearer, maintaina hairstyle of the wearer, lift hair away from the wearer's neck, and/orcover and/or protect the scalp so that hair treatments and/ormedications may be applied thereto and held in place by the head wrap.

A lower edge of the band may be configured to be proximate to a hairline of a wearer when worn and may include two notches shaped, sized,and positioned within the band to align with the wearer's ears so that,for example, the band may wrap around a wearer's head without coveringthe wearer's ears (i.e., each of the wearer's ears are positioned in anotch). In some embodiments, a top of the wearer's head is not coveredby the band when the head wrap is worn by the wearer.

In some embodiments, the band includes a first and second end that areconfigured to be attached to one another when the band is wrapped aroundthe wearer's head. Alternatively, the head wrap may not include firstand second ends and may, instead comprise a circular band that is, forexample, slipped over a wearer's head and then placed in a preferredposition (e.g., with a lower edge of the band being proximate to thehairline).

In some embodiments, the band may include a neck extension positionedbetween the first notch and the second notch and configured to extenddownwards from a lower edge of the band and cover a hairline of thewearer positioned at a base of the wearer's head. The neck extension maybe curved in shape.

On some occasions, the head wrap may include more than one layer ofmaterial or fabric. On these occasions, an inner lay may be configuredto absorb moisture and/or wick moisture away from the wearer's head. Theouter layer may be configured to, for example, have a decorativeappearance. On some occasions, the outer layer may be made from awaterproof and/or water resistant material configured to, for example,prevent moisture from the wearer's head from penetrating the outerlayer.

In some embodiments, the head wrap may include a covering that may bepermanently or removably affixed to the band. The covering may beconfigured to cover a portion of the band, hold the band in place,and/or decorate and/or embellish the head wrap.

Written Description

Disclosed herein is a head and hair wrap (sometimes referred to hereinas a “head wrap”) that encircles a wearer's head and keeps his or herhair in place during, for example, physical activity, sleeping, hairstyling, hair conditioning, and/or hair drying. The head wraps disclosedherein are configured so that a lower edge of the head wrap may becoincident with a hairline of a wearer when worn so that the fine hairsthat occur at the hairline (as well as other hair on the wearer's head)are enclosed within the wrap when worn. The head wrap may be worn sothat it wraps around the front, back, and the sides of a wearer's headwhile leaving a top of the wearer's head uncovered, which may allow forthe positioning of hair on top of the wearers head (e.g., above thewrap) and/or ventilation of the head.

The head wraps described herein are configured to keep hair smooth andin place all around the wearer's scalp and hairline (i.e., along thewearer's temporal area, parietal ridge, and the nape of the neckunderneath the occipital bone) and, in particular, around the edges ofthe hairline where small, short, and/or fly away hairs are traditionallyparticularly difficult to keep in place particularly when these hairsget wet or moist due to, for example, sweat, which tends to revert backto its natural state (e.g., curly or frizzy) or otherwise undo ahairstyle.

The head wraps described herein are configured to wrap around theperimeter of the wearer's head but be open at the top so that hair maybe exposed to the open air. This achieves at least two purposes: 1)ventilation of the wearer's head to prevent over-heating, and 2) allowsa volume of hair to be positioned outside the head wrap, which allowsthe hair around the wearer's hairline to held in place withoutcompressing the remainder of the wearer's hear. This allows the wearerto use the head wrap disclosed herein without disrupting or damaging hisor her hairstyle (e.g., braids, weaves, etc.). It is also morecomfortable than wearing a head wrap that covers a wearer's entire head.In this way, the head wraps described herein may be used for wearers whohave relatively long or short hair.

The head wraps described herein may also be used to seal hair to thewearer's hairline when worn, which may be helpful for maintaininghairstyles that require flat edges along the hairline to the wearer'shead or scalp (e.g., wet-to-dry hairstyles) and, in some instances, mayprotect hair, particularly the wearer's hair positioned near thehairline, from knotting, breakage, or other damage. Additionally, oralternatively, the head wraps described herein may be used to facilitatepenetration of medication, conditioning, and/or other treatments (e.g.,natural hair edge treatments, and/or thinning edge treatments) appliedto the scalp and/or protect the hair from being disturbed while the hairand/or scalp is being treated with the medication and/or othertreatments as may occur during, for example, sleeping or physicalactivity. Thus, in some instances, the head wraps disclosed herein maybe used to assist wearers who suffer from “tension baldness” or anyother type of head or hair issues that may be treated with a hair/scalpcircumference treatment by covering the hairline to, for example, keepthe medication in place (e.g., prevent it from being rubbed off and/orpushed away via, for example, sweat), protect the delicate hairspositioned at the hairline, and/or protect the hairline from rubbing orother agitation.

Turning now to the figures, FIG. 1A provides a top plan view of anexemplary head wrap 100 and FIG. 1B provides a top plan view of headwrap 100 with exemplary dimensions. Head wrap 100 includes an upper edge105 that extends along a length of head wrap 100, a first side 115, asecond side 125, and a neck extension 140. A first ear notch 120 ispositioned along a lower edge of head wrap 100 between first side 115and neck extension 140 and a second ear notch 130 is positioned along alower edge of head wrap 100 between second side 125 and neck extension140.

Head wrap 100 may be made from any appropriate material (e.g., cotton,nylon, spandex, LYCRA, etc.) and, in some embodiments may be configuredto stretch. In many cases, head wrap 100 is made from a wicking materialconfigured to wick moisture away from the wearer's scalp and hair sothat it may keep the wearer's head and/or neck dry and/or allow moistureto evaporate away from the head wrap 100.

Often times, a material used to fabricate head wrap 100 is uniformthroughout head wrap 100 but, this need not always be the case. Forexample, in some instances, all, or a portion (e.g., around first earnotch 120, second ear notch 130, and/or neck extension 140), of an edgeof head wrap 100 may be reinforced with a material that stretches inorder to, for example, conform to the head of a wearer.

In some embodiments, head wrap 100 may include two or more layers. Inthese embodiments, an inner layer configured to be proximate to thewearer's hair may be made from an absorbent and/or wicking material(e.g., cotton and/or wicking fabric) and an outer layer may be made fromthe same as the inner layer or a different material. In some cases, theouter layer may be made from a decorative material. Additionally, oralternatively, the outer layer may be made from a water and/or oilresistant material that may be configured to, for example, containmedication, sweat, and/or other materials within head wrap 100 so thatthey do not bleed out onto, for example, the outer layer, which maycause an unsightly appearance, and/or another garment or piece ofmaterial (e.g., a hat or pillow case). Additionally, or alternatively,in some embodiments, head wrap 100 may include an additional inner layerwhich may be configured to, for example, increase absorptivity of headwrap 100 (by, for example, absorbing excess sweat, hair treatments,and/or medication), increase a volume of head wrap 100, and/or improvethe comfort of wearing head wrap 100.

First side 115 may have a length 115L of, for example, 4-7 inches and awidth of, for example, 1-4.5 inches. In some cases, first side 115 maybe tapered along its length so that a width ranges from, for example,1.5-3 inches along its length with the wider portion of first side 115being proximate to first ear notch 120 and the narrower portion of firstside 115 being proximate to first attachment mechanism 110. Second side125 may be an approximate mirror image of first side 115 wherein alength of second side 125L is approximately 1-4.5 inches. In some cases,second side 125 may be tapered along its length so that a width rangesfrom, for example, 1.5-3 inches along its length with the wider portionof second side 125 being proximate to second ear notch 130 and thenarrower portion of second side 125 being proximate to second attachmentmechanism 135.

First side 115 includes a first attachment mechanism 110 configured tocooperate with a second attachment mechanism 135 positioned on secondside 125 so that first side 115 may be joined to second side 125 whenhead wrap 100 is worn by a wearer. First and second attachmentmechanisms 110 and 135 may be, for example, opposite sides of a clasp,snap, hook and eye, tie, VELCRO™, and/or similar closure mechanism orfastening device. In some embodiments, first and second attachmentmechanisms 110 and 135 may accommodate a range of positions so that asize of the head wrap may be adjustable to, for example, fit around avariety of head shapes and sizes and/or hair styles with a wearer'spreferred amount of compression.

Neck extension 140 may have a curved shape with an approximate length140L of 6-10 inches and a width 140W of 1-3.5 inches at an apex of thecurve. Neck extension 140 may be configured to extend down a wearer'sneck to, for example, cover hair positioned at the nape of the wearer'sneck and secure hair positioned at, or near, a wearer's hairline in theback of his or her head so that, for example, hair positioned at thebase of the neck along the hairline may be protected and/or a hairtreatment applied to the scalp at, or near, the hairline may be held inplace. An example of how neck extension 140 extends down to cover thehairline along the base of wearer's neck is shown in, for example, FIGS.2A and 2B and discussed below.

First and second ear notches 120 and 130 may be positioned along thelower edge of head wrap 100 and may have a curved shape with anapproximate length 120L and 130L of 0.3-3 inches each and a width 120Wand 130W of 0.5-3.5 inches at an apex of the curve. First and second earnotches 120 and 130 may be configured to wrap around hair positionednear (e.g., above, behind, and/or in front of) the wearer's respectivefirst and second ears and hold this hair in place while not covering thewearer's respective first and second ears as shown in, for example,FIGS. 2A and 2B and discussed below.

FIG. 1C is a top plan view of three different sizes (small, medium, andlarge) of head wrap 100 showing the relative proportions thereof with afirst hair wrap 105A being small, a second hair wrap 105B being medium,and a third hair wrap 105C being large.

FIGS. 2A and 2B provide a rear view and a side-perspective view,respectively, of head wrap 100 wrapped around a mannequin head 201 in amanner similar to how head wrap 100 may be wrapped around a wearer'shead. As may be seen in FIG. 2A, neck extension 140 is configured towrap around the base of the wearer's head, below the occipital bone, andcover hair positioned at the nape of the wearer's neck. This is incontrast to other, traditional, head wraps that do not extend as fardown the wear's neck and do not cover all the hair positioned at, near,or below the wearer's occipital bone which may cause, for example,curling or fizzing of hair positioned there when it gets wet. Inaddition, because traditional wraps do extend fully down the neck tocover all hair at the hairline, the lower edge of these traditional headwraps cuts across the hair positioned on the lower back of the head,which may leave an indentation, or line, in the hair or otherwisedisrupt the wearer's hairstyle. Neck extension 140 cures both of theseproblems and, by covering hair at the base of the neck, preserves hairstyles by, for example, keeping this hair smooth against the headwithout pushing into the hair itself which may cause indents in the hairand/or disruption of the wearer's hairstyle.

As may be seen in FIG. 2B, first and/or second ear notch 120 or 130 isconfigured to cover hair above, in front of, and behind the wearer's earwhile not covering the wearer's ear, which may serve to make wearinghead wrap 100 more comfortable. In addition, FIG. 2B shows where firstand second attachment mechanisms 110 and 135 meet to attach, or fasten,to one another to secure head wrap 100 around the wearer's head.

FIGS. 2A and 2B also show how head wrap 100 may be used to secure hairaround the hairline of a wearer to his or her head while leaving the topof the wearer's head uncovered. Leaving the top of the wearer's headuncovered may allow for greater ventilation, or cooling, of the crown ofthe wearer's head, which may be particularly important when the weareris exercising, sleeping, or is suffering from hot flashes that may becaused by menopause.

FIG. 3A is a block diagram of an exemplary covering 300 that may beplaced over and/or attached to the head wrap 100. Covering 300 may beconfigured to wrap around and/or head wrap 100 in order to, for example,support hair, position hair, embellish head wrap 100 and/or provide afashionable appearance. Covering 300 may be a rectangular- orsquare-shaped piece of fabric of sufficient length to wrap around headwrap 100, or a portion thereof, when it is being worn by a wearer.Covering 300 may be of any material, color, and/or printed design. Inmany cases, the user may wrap the head wrap 100 around his or her headfirst and may then wrap covering 300 around head wrap 100 once head wrap100 is securely positioned. Covering 300 may be permanently (e.g.,sewed, glued, and/or thermo-bonded on) and/or removably (via, forexample, VELCRO™, a tie, and/or snaps) attached to head wrap 100.Alternatively, covering 300 may be detached from head wrap 100 and maystay positioned over head wrap 100 via, for example, tying covering 300over top of head wrap 100.

In some embodiments, covering 300 may be affixed to head wrap 100. Forexample, covering 300 may be sewn or glued onto an outward facingsurface of head wrap 100 at, for example, a center or approximate centerof neck extension 140. FIG. 3B provides a side view of an exemplary ofan exemplary head wrap system 310 that includes head wrap 100 with acovering 300 affixed to the head wrap 100 at a center point 320 so thatcovering 300 has a first side 300A and a second side 300B. In someembodiments, first side 300A may be the same length as second side 300Band, in other embodiments, first side 300A and second side 300B may beof different lengths. First and second sides of covering 300A and 300Bmay be configured to extend from center point 320 to wrap around theunderlying head wrap 100 when worn by a user. In some embodiments, anoverall length of covering 300 may be longer than head wrap 100 so that,for example, ends of covering may be tied into a decorative knot asshown in, for example, FIGS. 4A-4E, which are images of women wearinghead wrap 100 or a head wrap system 310. More particularly, FIG. 4Ashows two women; one standing and one kneeling. The standing woman iswearing head wrap 100 and shows how first or second ear notch 120 or 130covers hair near the woman's ear but does not cover her ear. Thekneeling woman is wearing a head wrap system 310 wherein covering 300 istied with a bow in the front and covers the entirety of head wrap 100.

FIG. 4B is an image of three women with the woman on the left wearinghead wrap 100 and the women in the center and on the right side of theimage wearing head wrap system 310. As may be seen in FIG. 4B, the hairon the crown of the woman wearing head wrap 100 is not covered by headwrap 100 and is free to extend above and outside of the head wrap.

FIG. 4C is an image of a woman wearing head wrap system 310 wherecovering 300 is tied a knot in the front and wrapped around the back ofthe wearer's head.

FIG. 4D is an image of two woman both of whom are wearing a head wrapsystem 310 where both sides of covering 300 for the woman on the leftare twisted in the front of the wearer's head and then wrapped aroundthe back of her head and the woman on the right is wearing head wrapsystem 310 wherein covering 300 is knotted in a bow in the front. andFIG. 4E is an image of a side of a woman wearing head wrap system 310where covering 300 is knotted in a bow in the front.

Hence, a head wrap configured to wrap around a hairline of a wearerwhile not covering the wearer's ears is herein disclosed. Additionally,a head wrap system that includes a head wrap and a covering is hereindisclosed.

1. A head wrap comprising: a band of material sized and shaped to wraparound a wearer's head, a lower edge of the band being configured to beproximate to a hair line of a wearer when worn, the lower edge of theband including a first notch and a second notch, the first notch beingsized, shaped, and positioned within the band to align with the wearer'sfirst ear and the second notch being sized, shaped, and positionedwithin the band to align with the wearer's second ear.
 2. The head wrapof claim 1, wherein the band is configured so that the band does notcover the wearer's first ear or the wearer's second ear when worn. 3.The head wrap of claim 1, wherein the band further comprises: a firstend; and a second end, wherein the second end is configured to attach tothe first end when the band is wrapped around the wearer's head.
 4. Thehead wrap of claim 1, wherein the band further comprises: a neckextension configured to extend downwards from the band and cover ahairline of the wearer positioned at a base of the wearer's head, theneck extension being positioned between the first notch and the secondnotch.
 5. The head wrap of claim 1, wherein the band further comprises:an outer layer; and an inner layer.
 6. The head wrap of claim 1, whereinthe band further comprises: an outer layer; and an inner layer, theinner layer being configured to wick moisture away from the wearer'shead.
 7. The head wrap of claim 1, wherein the band further comprises:an outer layer, the outer layer being configured to have a decorativeappearance; and an inner layer.
 8. The head wrap of claim 1, wherein atop of the wearer's head is not covered by the band when the head wrapis worn by the wearer.
 9. The head wrap of claim 1, wherein the band isconfigured to protect a hairline of the wearer.
 10. The head wrap ofclaim 1, wherein the band is configured to hold a hair treatment appliedto the scalp in place while worn by the wearer.
 11. The head wrap ofclaim 1, further comprising: a covering affixed to the band, thecovering being configured to cover a portion of the band.
 12. The headwrap of claim 10, wherein the covering is configured to enable a wearerto wrap the head wrap around her head and affix the head wrap to herhead.